The Blackout Girl ✔️

chapter nineteen

Chapter Nineteen

Lexi jumped when the door of the interrogation room swung open, her pulse galloping as her body seized up. She was on edge. No, worse than on edge. She was on the verge of completely falling into a stress-induced blackout. They were rare, but they happened, and it terrified her.

Pity flashed across Kaytee's face. Lex knew it well since everyone seemed to be so damn good at feeling sorry for her.

"It's just me, Lexi," she assured her. "You're okay."

Lex gripped the edges of the chair as tightly as she could. "Sorry."

"You have nothing to apologize for," said Kaytee.

She sat down across from Lexi, folding her hands. She held no pen, no paper. This didn't feel like a formal interview to Lex. It was more like a conversation, and she wasn't sure what to make of that. It was a new tactic, an unfamiliar situation to navigate. Lexi knew the ins and outs of questioning, from good cop to bad cop moves. She didn't know what this counted as, or even how she should go about it.

"Can I get you something?" Kaytee asked. "Coffee? Water?"

Lexi shook her head. When she bit down on the ragged skin inside her cheek, she tasted the coppery flavor of blood. There was a numbness that settled over her, and physical pain was the only thing she was capable of processing.

"You've had a long night," Kaytee pointed out. "I know this is hard and this is probably the last place you want to be right now. If we want this to go well, I need you to be totally honest. There's no judgment. I just need the truth."

"The truth?" Lexi echoed. "What if I don't know the truth?"

She thought back to the blackout, to waking up in the bar with no recollection of driving there. She was out of control, dazed, and left to pick up the scraps of her consciousness. Kaytee could pretend she was on her side, but Lexi knew alliances here were fickle.

How could she lie? How could she ever lie if half the time she didn't even know what was going on?

Lexi was tired of pretending, though. She didn't have the energy to think up an excuse. She didn't deserve to get away with something awful. Even at the expense of her own comfort, she was willing to do what she had to. For Quinton.

Thinking his name sent a pang through her chest.

Her chin quivered, and she fought the tears.

"Can you take me through everything you did yesterday?" Kaytee prodded. "Anything you can remember will help us. Take your time and walk me through it."

Kaytee was patient, almost condescending in the way she spoke. Lexi felt like a child, but it was fitting. She was behaving like one. She didn't take offense because of that.

Lexi mumbled at first, afraid that a higher volume might make her burst. "Well, we had breakfast together. Quinton made us Pop-Tarts after Aunt Delaney burned the eggs so bad we couldn't eat them. He went to class and Dad drove Delaney to the airport."

"Where was she going?"

"Georgia. It's for a work thing. She goes annually," Lexi explained. "I spent the day doing chores and I went to sleep. That's all."

She cut herself short. It was so obvious, like a scarlet letter.

Kaytee raised a brow. "Is it? Lexi, do you remember what I said about honesty? There's nothing you can't say here."

"What are you? A therapist?" Lexi snapped.

"I almost was," Kaytee said, unfazed by Lex's sharp tone. "I joined the FBI instead."